The Nguyen Emperor Khai Dinh's Royal Tomb is unique among the royal tombs in Hue, Vietnam. Where other royal tombs are expansive and invite respectful reflection, Khai Dinh built his final resting place to be monumental in style and bombastic in execution.
Plus, if the local tour guides are to be believed, Khai Dinh's tomb was purposefully designed to be difficult to visit - the tomb was built on the side of a mountain, and its inner sanctum is 127 steps up from street level, a fact that must have grated on the court officials who were required on pain of their lives to pay their respects to the late emperor.
Getting to Khai Dinh's tomb: the site is six miles from Hue, and is served by package tours, xe om, and cyclo drivers from the town center. For more on each method and their prices, consult our article on How to Visit Hue Royal Tombs.
Operating Hours and Admission Fees: Admission to Khai Dinh's Royal Tomb costs VND 55,000, to be paid at the gate. The Tomb is open from 8:00am to 6:00pm.
Must Haves: parasol, sunglasses, and a bottle of water in the sunny season during April-September, and an umbrella and raincoat/jacket during the rainy months of October-March. (See our Weather in Vietnam article to find out more.) Comfortable shoes, plus calves of steel - those 127 steps won't climb themselves.
Khai Dinh's royal tomb is definitely not wheelchair-friendly, and the government hasn't seen fit to add an elevator to the site, so if you're mobility-challenged, better give this one a pass.
